Method of and means for the fixation of track-rails of tramway or railway lines.



No. 7I4,l67. PaicentedNow 25, I902. W; J. FOOT. METHOD OF ANDMEANS FORTHE FIXATION OF TRACK RAILS OF TBAOTWAY UR BAILWAY LINES.

' (Application filed Dec. 19, 1901.)

'r Norms PETERS co. PH

' dated November 20, 1901; in Spain, dated N- UNITED STATES l/VILLIAMJOSHUA FOOT,

METHOD OF AND MEANS FOR THE FIXATION 0F OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

TRACK-RAILS OF T RAMWAY OR RAILWAY LINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 714,167, datedNovember 25, 1902.

Application filed December 19,190

To all whom it may concern: v

Be it known that I, WILLIAM JOSHUA Foo'r, a subject of His Majesty theKing of Great Britain, and a resident of 114 New North road, Islington,London, N., have invented a certain new and useful Improved Method ofand Means for the Fixation of the Track Bails of Tramway or RailwayLines, (for which I have made applications for patents in Great Britain,No. 23,619, dated November 21, 1901; in France, Serial No. 304,765,dated November 19, 1901; in Belgium, Serial No. 12,040, dated November18, 1901; in Denmark, No. 1,304,

vember 22, 1901, and in Germany, dated November 19, 1901, the numbers ofwhich two latter applications are not yet known,) and of which thefollowing is a specification.

My invention has reference to the fixation of the track-rails of railwayand tramway lines; and it consists of certain improvements in methodsand means for effecting such fixation whereby a worn or broken rail maybe quickly and easily removed and replaced by another without the needof (in the case of tramway-lines) removing the granite cubes, woodblocks, asphalt, or other material forming the road in which the saidrails are laid and in the case of railway-lines without the need ofremoving the seatings upon which the said rails are laid, the objects ofmy said invention being to provide a more solid and permanent foundationfor such rails, in combination with means for more quickly and easilyremoving such rails and substituting others therefor than obtains withthe means of fixation in present-use. I have hereunto appended a sheetof drawings in order that my said invention may be the betterunderstood, of which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a tramway-railfixed in its seating according to my invention, Fig. 2 being across-section of same and the roadway in which it is laid. Fig. 3 is aperspective view of a railway-rail fixed in its seating according to myinvention, Fig. 4 being a cross-section of same and the roadway in whichit is laid.

In the case of tramway-lines it has hitherto been customary to form therails with a broad flange or footing, the said rail being 1.Serialllo.86,566. Nomads-,1.)

dation by the placing in position of the gran ite cubes, Wood blocks,asphalt, or other material of which the road is made, and to remove anyone length of such track-rail and replace by another the said roadway ateach side of said length has hitherto had to be removed and replaced,and to remove a length of track-rail upon a railway-line as they are atpresent fixed means a lot of heavy labor in first driving out the wedgesby which the said rails are secured .in their chairs (which is notinfrequently attended by the rupture and consequent need of renewal ofthe said chair) and then to disengage them from their fish-plates, thesame operation having to be gone through in the fixing of thesubstituted rail; but my invention is intended to supersede thislengthy, laborious, tedious, and expensive means, as hereinafterexplained.

In so far as relates to the track-rails of tramway-lines I provide, ofany suitable metal or other material, a base or supporting-carrier A,formed in convenient lengths, approximating to the lengths of thesections of trackrails in present use, the said base or supporting-railconsisting of a broad base-flange B B and vertical center web 0, thelatter having formed in its upper surface a longitudinal groove D,preferably of rectangular formation in cross-section.

The track-rail'E may be of the usual or most approved formation upon itsupper surface; but instead of the usual footing at the base of the webF, by which the rails in present use are supported upon theirfoundations, I arrange the said web of such formation in cross-sectionas to be easily but rigidly seated in the groove D of the support A,suitable allowance being made for expansion and contraction, and forpreference I arrange that the ends and, if necessary, other parts of thelength of each track-rail E may be secured in position upon its supportsA by the means of suitable bolts G passing horizontally and transverselythrough both A and F and secured by nuts in the usual way, while theends of the sections of the said supports may be connected by the meansof fish-plates H and bolts and nuts J, as shown. The flanges B B of thesupports may be entire orprovided with openings, such as K or L, orboth, for the fixed in position upon a wood or concrete founsaving ofmaterial, and may be secured in position upon a suitably-arrangedconcrete or other foundation, such as M and N, and be there retained bythe laying of the granite cubes, wood blocks, or other means, assuggested by P in Fig. 2.

It will thus be understood that while the supporting-rail or base A is apermanent fixture the rails E may be removed for repair or renewal atany time without disturbing the permanent way and in one-half or lesstime than it takes to effect a like operation by the present system oflaying such trackrails, and to further facilitate this operation withoutremoving the said cubes, blocks, or the like I may provide at thejunctions of the track-rails suitably-formed metallic or other boxesRand R, set down at each side of the track-rail upon the flange or baseB B and secured in position by the setting of the said cubes, blocks, orthe like P, the one B being for preference wider than R and placed atthe bolt-head side of the rail, so that while B may be large enough touse therein a spanner to operate the nuts of the bolts G the box R maybe large enough to permit such bolts to be knocked out thereinto,suitable lids or covers R preferably roughened upon their uppersurfaces, being provided for each of the said boxes and provided withany suitable means of fixation, if needed. By this means the removal ofthe said lids would permit the unbolting of the rail to be removed andthe bolting up of the one substituted therefor without the need ofremoving a single stone, block, or the like P; hence the main object ofmy invention.

In so far as relates to the track-rails E of railway-lines I arrange thefixation of these by forming the said rails with one wearingsurface onlyand with the web F adapted to fit into a groove D in a supportingrail orbase A with flanges B B and secured therein by bolts and nuts Gin likemanner. The supportingrail or base A may be secured upon sleepers S bymeans of the spikes T; but for preference, and especially in theconstruction of new lines, I purpose setting the said supporting-railsin a block foundation of concrete, as suggested by dotted outline at Vin Fig. 4, as the said supporting-rail will never need removing whenonce fixed, (unless in cases of alteration of direction of track,) andsuch foundation, unlike the sleepers in present use, would not needperiodical renewal, and creeping of the rails as now experienced wouldbe impossible.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my saidinvention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare thatwhat I claim is 1. In combination, a supporting-rail having a centralweb with a channel in its upper edge and horizontally-extendingbase-flanges, a top or track rail having a contracted lower edge seatedin said channel, and side walls at the joints seated upon thebase-flanges, and having outwardlyextending horizontal flanges, saidside walls forming boxes, substantially as described.

2. In combination, a supporting-rail having a central web with a channelin its upper edge and horizontally-extending base-flanges, a top ortrack rail havinga contracted lower edge seated in said channel, andside walls at the joints seated upon the base-flanges, and havingoutwardly-extending horizontal flanges, said side walls forming boxes,ribs extending inwardly from the walls of said boxes near their upperends and covers supported by said ribs, substantially as described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of twowitnesses.

WILLIAM JOSHUA FOOT. Witnesses:

HENRY CONRAD HEIDE, GEORGE THOMAS HYDE.

